This Cheese Fondue Recipe is inspired from a trip to the Jura mountain region of eastern France, where the famed Comté cheese is produced. We’re combining two classic cheeses (Emmental and Comté) with wine and grilling it for the best outdoor fondue experience. Comté Cheese Several years ago I had the honor of traveling to…
France Travel
Back to Bourgogne: An introduction to Burgundy wines
A beginner lesson on the wines of the Burgundy (Bourgogne) region of France. Good Burgundies can be life changing. They are the kinds of wines that, in the 60’s and 70’s, motivated crazy folks to pack up and plant vineyards in Oregon, because they saw the potential for the kinds of life changing wines they…
Comté Photo Preview
A photo preview of the Jura Mountain Region in eastern France and home of the world class Comté cheese. Say cheese! Comté cheese that is. Last month I had the opportunity to tour the Jura Mountain Region in eastern France and home of Comté cheese production. As someone who knows a fair share about wine, but admittedly much…
Cahors, France — a photo preview
This week’s “favorites” are dedicated to my week in Cahors, France. Cahors, France Cahors, located in southwest France, hails claim to the birthplace of Malbec (the grape Argentina gets all the credit for). I was there for “Cahors Malbec Days”, a four day symposium and trade event focusing on all things Malbec. While there I…
Friday Favorites – more simple summer wines and Cahors prep
A roundup of my favorite things from the week in the categories of wine, food, travel, and lifestyle. FOOD I’m still coming off a high watching hubs help cater his first event with the new smoker. 320 pounds of pork butt were slow cooked to perfection by hubby and Matt Johnston of Boda’s Kitchen celebrating…
Of long lost Burgundy and crying over mustard
My husband and I flew to France in 2008 for our honeymoon (belated by three years!) traveling through Paris, Burgundy, and Bordeaux (with a day trip to Champagne) over the course of twelve days. Throughout our trip we had accumulated about six bottles of wine to take home for a few years of cellaring. Had…
Château Piada – a sweeter side of Bordeaux
When Frédéric Lalande was a young boy he dreamt of becoming a fighter pilot, not a winemaker like his father and grandfather. * “When I was a child I used to watch the pilots from the vineyard. There was a training area not too far, the planes would get very close and dive down towards…
5 things to do in Bordeaux (besides visiting wineries)
When my husband and I visited France on our two-week honeymoon we spent a couple days in Paris, a day in Champagne, and the remaining time split between Burgundy and Bordeaux. When anybody in country asked us about our travels the responses were unanimously, “Oh, you must like wine.” Yes, oh yes we do. But…
Friday Favorites — Bordeaux Travel Edition
I returned from Bordeaux this week, so naturally this weeks favorites are all about some of my favorite things from the trip, and as always in the categories of wine, food, travel, and lifestyle. Wine For many the word Bordeaux conjures up images of the famous great growth wines of Bordeaux. Wines that are…
Images of Cognac
As you may remember, earlier this year I was invited to go on a press trip to Congac, sponsored by the Bureau National Interprofessionnel du Cognac (BNIC), as a result of a writing contest I won (you can read that piece here). In short, the trip was amazing and Cognac is a breathtaking city. Not…
A Cognac Epiphany
When we were both 19 and living in Flagstaff, AZ, my best friend started dating a very tall and nice German guy. As things got serious he invited her to spend the Christmas holiday together, in his home state of Saarland in western Germany, where she would meet his family for the first time. When…
An accidental day trip to Champagne
*This post was the grand prize winner in the cork’d contest to win tickets to attend the Independent Champagne and Sparkling Wine Invitational (ICSWI). My Most Memorable Experience While Drinking Sparkling Wine Sparkling wine. What can I say? It is the primary reason I drink wine in the first place, the beverage that got me into…